#MUBB Travels To No. 4/4 UConn Sunday

The Marquette University men's basketball team (5-9, 0-3 BIG EAST) continues BIG EAST Conference action on Sunday, Jan. 4 when the squad travels to No. 4/4 UConn (13-1, 3-0 BIG EAST) to face the Huskies in Harry A. Gampel Pavilion. NBC and Peacock feature the broadcast, with John Fanta (play-by-play), Donny Marshall (analyst) and Kim Adams (reporter) calling the action. Following Sunday's outing, the Golden Eagles will open a two-game homestand against Xavier on Wednesday, Jan. 7 at 6 p.m. CT prior to welcoming Villanova to Milwaukee on Saturday, Jan. 10 at 1:30 p.m. CT.

All-Time Series Has Plenty Of Highlights

Marquette has faced UConn on just 21 occasions all-time (Huskies lead 13-8), but the limited series has already provided a number of memories.

The all-time series dates back to the program's first year in the BIG EAST in 2005-06. MU hosted the Huskies at the Bradley Center on Jan. 3, 2006 in the team's first home game as a member of the BIG EAST Conference. Steve Novak finished with 41 points and 16 rebounds and Jerel McNeal chipped in 19 points and 12 boards in a 94-79 Marquette victory over No. 2 UConn to hand the Huskies their first loss of the season.

Other series highlights include a game-winning shot by Jimmy Butler with three seconds left in a 70-68 road win in 2009-10 and a home overtime win on Jan. 1, 2013 when guard Junior Cadougan forced the extra session on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer.

The Huskies have claimed each of the last five meetings, most recently holding off MU 72-66 at Gampel Pavilion on March 5, 2025 to sweep the season series. The Golden Eagles trailed by just one point in the final minute, but a deep trey by UConn's Alex Karaban as the shot clock expired proved to be the difference. Forward David Joplin finished with 23 points and guard Kam Jones chipped in 21 points.

Marquette's last win at UConn was a 79-64 decision on Feb. 18, 2012 at the XL Center, the last of three-straight wins in Hartford. MU's lone win at Gampel Pavilion came on Jan. 10, 2007, a 73-69 win over the 24th-ranked Huskies.

James Jr. Off To Quick Start In League Play

Freshman point guard Nigel James Jr. has scored double figures in points in six of the last seven outings, including each of the first three BIG EAST contests.

Early in league action, he leads the team with 17.3 points per game (t4th overall through games of Jan. 2) and is shooting 50.0 percent (19-of-38) from the field overall and 6-of-13 (46.2 percent) from behind the 3-point line. In an average of 30.1 minutes per contest, he is also contributing 4.3 assists, 3.7 rebounds and 1.3 steals per outing.

For the season, James Jr. is second on the team with 12.4 points per game, which ranks 18th in the BIG EAST.

Gold Nets Personal Best Against Pirates

Senior forward Ben Gold collected his sixth double-digit scoring effort of the season on Dec. 30 against Seton Hall, finishing with a career-best 19 points.

The Wellington, New Zealand native finished 5-of-11 from the floor and knocked down all eight of his free throw attempts in 36 minutes of action off the bench. He also chipped in seven rebounds, two assists a steal and a blocked shot.

Through games of Jan. 2, Gold ranks seventh in the BIG EAST in rebounding (6.5 rpg.).

Parham Settling Into Starting Role

Sophomore forward Royce Parham, a member of the BIG EAST All-Freshman Team in 2024-25, made his first-career start in the BIG EAST opener and is settling in as a member of the first five.

In the first three games of league action, Parham is contributing 10.0 points and 4.7 rebounds per game (second on the team in both categories) while shooting 48.0 percent (12-of-25) from the floor and 50.0 percent (4-of-8) from behind the 3-point line.

The Pittsburgh native's game averages and shooting percentages in BIG EAST outings are all improved statistics from his season-long efforts in 2025-26.